


The Beauty and the Beast

by TheArcaneKnight



Category: League of Legends
Genre: Action, Adventure, Eventual Romance, F/M, Furry, Violence, slight body horror
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:14:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24893731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheArcaneKnight/pseuds/TheArcaneKnight
Summary: Ahri, the fox Vastaya, finds herself hunted down by poachers on one of her information runs in Ionia. She is almost killed by them, until a new face, clearly not from this land, shows itself to save her from her fate...
Relationships: Ahri/Warwick (League of Legends)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 22





	1. Ahri

Ahri was running, running through the forest on a beautiful full moon night. She was  
running for her dear life.

Why was it that every time she went out of hiding to look for a bit of information, she would leave being chased by hunters and other ill intended humans. All of that for the simple fact that she was a Vastaya, a human with animal traits and magical properties. Her foxtails drifted in the wind as she ran as fast as her legs would take her. She tried losing the barbarians by looping around trees and taking them deeper into the forest, but nothing worked! Every time she dared a glance behind her, they were still on her trail!

“Come on girl, we only want one of your nine tails,” shouted one of the three hunters chasing her.

They followed this by firing their guns at her. The bullets hissed by her head and landed in the plants and trees around her. One almost hit its mark and grazed the side of her left leg. She let out a sharp cry but kept running as blood started to leak from the wound, but she kept running. Never giving them any ground.

Gunfire kept echoing as the chase went on. She used the last of her magic reserve to  
launch blue fire, or fox fire as she called it, at the enemy, not dangerous enough to hurt them but enough to slow them down. She looked behind her to see- it had worked! She was able to slow them down. It seemed she was finally going to be able to get away, only for that thought to be shattered as she tripped on an outgrown root. She yelped and tumbled forward a few extra meters before coming to a stop at the front of a natural rock wall.

As her senses came back to her, she looked around and saw that she had stopped in a flowery clearing. Ahri soon remembered what was chasing her and stood up to try

getting back into her run before being hit in the face by the butt of a gun. Knocked to the ground, she weakly tried standing back up only to be hit once more.

“No more running you pest,” sneered one of the hunters, “we’ve been running for the better part of the night but now we got you.”

Ahri knew this, she was backed up against a wall, her energy was entirely gone, and she was outnumbered three against one. Her situation was well and truly hopeless. Tears started swelling in her eyes while blood kept falling from her cut and her newly busted lip. After having lived through so much, lived so many adventures and gotten so close to the truth. She was going to be killed by a group of poachers.

One of them crouched down and pulled on her hair bringing her face up to his.

“Aw, don’t cry little lady,” spat the man, mockingly, “this will only hurt a lot!”

All of them laughed at her misery as the man let go of her hair and let her drop,  
making a soft thud as she landed on the grass floor of the forest.

“Alright boys! Time to collect our due!”

The green light being given, the two other hunters grabbed her arms and pinned her  
while the third, very clearly the boss, pulled out his knife. She squirmed and begged  
them to leave her alone. The men simply laughed and went on with their business.  
The boss grabbed one of her snow-white tails and put the knife to the base of it. Just  
as Ahri shouted for them to stop, a howl unlike anything any of them had heard  
echoed across the silent moonlit forest.

No one dared move after hearing whatever creature had made that sound.

“The hell was tha-,” the “boss” never got to finish his sentence as a hulking and furry beast pounced on him. The man screamed in fear and the creature quickly sank its fangs into his throat and pulled, silencing the man and making blood pool around the boss’s corpse.

Everyone stood in awe and fear as it stood up on its hind legs to his full height. It had a basic human shape, but its torso was much broader. The creature must have easily been two meters thirty with big strong arms and machinery along its back and red fluid sloshing around in a glass container. It also looked like it had some form or pumps and tubes that were dispersed around the creature’s body, but not to the point of it being entirely mechanical.

Before Ahri could finish her analysis of the beast, its head snapped onto the two men and herself, snarling as it did. Its eyes were a bright red, a red that would have defined rage in and of itself. The poachers reacted, both pulling out their guns and unloading on the monster all the while screaming bloody murder.

Multiple bullets hit it before it let out a mighty bellow. It seemed to be louder than anything comprehensible. Ahri flattened her ears and closed her eyes in pain while the two men dropped the guns to use their hands to try and shield their ears from the abuse of the howl’s relentless attack.

The following sound Ahri heard was the unsheathing of metal, a slashing noise, and the sound of two people gargling. When she opened her eyes again, she saw the hunters on the ground, convulsing, with their throats slit and their blood flowing into the earth. She was snapped away from her thoughts as she heard a low grumble right next to her.

She turned to look into the red eyes of the beast. The blaze in its eyes had died down, still there, but almost undetectable. It eyed her intensely, almost looking like it was thinking about what to do with her.

Ahri allowed herself this moment of inattention from it to look around for a way to escape, but if she wanted to leave, she would need to get past the beast. She looked back up to the creature, maybe she could find a weak spot to hit it and run.

It was vaguely wolf-like, it had a long square snout and long pointy ears. The redliquid she had seen in the robotics of the creature had now turned a bright toxic green and the mechanics she had seen on the creature’s back were also very prominent on the creature’s right hand. It almost looked like its hand had grown over  
the machinery; the claws were entirely metal on that hand. It had battle-torn brown military looking pants and wolf-like legs, though much thicker and more muscular than a normal wolf. It had a jaw with the biggest fangs she had ever seen. They were long and sharp enough to have been used for a knife if anyone were to obtain one of the white teeth. Its eyes were a mighty and feral red, with black pinpricks for pupils.  
They were moving up and down her body, analysing her. She would have thought the creature was checking her out if she wasn’t so absolutely terrified of what it was going to do to her.

And while Ahri was gazing upon the beast in terrified awe, the most peculiar thing happened.

The creature started sniffing her.

It started by smelling her shoulders and slowly started moving up towards her face. When it reached her neck, it stopped for what felt like far too long for comfort to the Vastaya. It breathed in her scent a few more times before breathing out hot air onto her. Ahri shivered at the sensation, the warm breath was a great contrast to the cold night. It stopped at this. Backing off slightly before looking straight into her eyes. Its eyes were far more relaxed than before, going from pinpricks to what she would have called “normal pupils”. It looked at her in… worry? Like it was trying to see if it had hurt her in anyway. Almost silently asking if she was doing alright…

The beast then glanced down from her eyes and to what she thought was the cut in her lip. Upon looking there, the creature flinched, the liquid on its back flashing  
between green and red, its eyes going back to pinpricks and the fiery rage in its eyes lighting up again. It started backing off, its head held between its massive paws. It growled and snarled like it was… pained?

She almost started feeling bad for it seeing how much pain it was in.

She could not understand what had triggered this reaction, but she sure wasn’t going to stick around and find out! She got back up and started running from the blood-soaked grass and flowers. She was about to meet the great trees of the forest and escape from this horror show before…before she heard it whine quietly.

Her run slowed down, and she turned around to see the beast curled up on itself. Its head still being held in between its two mighty hands. It was shaking visibly. The whining continued with short, irregular pauses between them. If she hadn’t known any better, she would have said it was crying.

She couldn’t just leave it in its misery. After all it had saved her life, all be it in its own gruesome way.

She used an ability all Vastaya had to a certain extent. Energy manipulation. Or, as they liked to call it “Aura”. This allowed her to see the energy flowing in and out of the world. Some could redirect this energy and transform it into magic, some could use the energy as sustenance. Ahri had a bit of both. Because of this, whenever she “fed” off of another being’s energy, she also saw a fraction of the memories attached to whatever creature she was draining.

She closed her eyes for a moment and reopened them. They both glowed a bright blue and that allowed her to see the world in all its magical glory. The forest seemed to radiate magic and power as she looked at it with new eyes. Ahri took a moment to admire the beauty of this primal and wild forest, life seeming to bloom all around her. How content she would have been to just sit there, admiring mother nature’s work, but she was snapped back from her dream as she heard the wounded animal cry out once more.

As she looked towards it, she saw its aura. It was…wrong. All beings shined with aura although it changed slightly with each species. But this creature’s aura was wrong, It didn’t shine it…dimmed. The shape of it was like someone had tried cutting a Vastaya’s aura and grafting it onto a human. The beast’s energy was like looking into two black holes, constantly trying to eat each other.

This thing should not have been alive. It was an error, something that defied all-natural logic. Yet there it was, balled up and whining like a new-born pup.

She sucked in some of the creature’s energy. Again, it felt so wrong. Making her feel sick as she breathed it in. Ahri after allowing herself a moment to get used to the feeling, started looking through the memories.

What she saw she could never forget. The memories of this creature were all pain, torture and violence. Flashes of an operation table, a man and blood. Blood, blood, blood… everywhere. Almost like the creature’s memories were drowned in the crimson liquid. She then felt a pain throughout her right arm, like it was being ripped off followed with a shout of pure pain from what sounded like a human male.

She screamed and snapped herself out from the creature’s memories. She breathed heavily as she checked her right arm to see if it was still intact. She had never felt such pain in her life.

What could it have all meant? What had she seen? What in the Galactic Dragons name was this thing? So many questions plagued her mind, she didn’t know where to start.

She soon realised something that cut her train of thought, it was quiet. Until now there had been a background noise of the creature crying, but no more. She turned to see it was staring at her, not in curiosity like last time, but as a predator eyeing its prey. Its eyes were blazing red, almost shining like lights. The liquid in its back stopped flashing between the red and green and turned completely red. The creature then started having convulsions, its body spasming and contorting as it growled and snarled.

Ahri knew she was in danger and started running. Running faster than she ever thought herself capable of running. She got to the end of the clearing and jumped to a tree for a height advantage and to have a better chance of escaping this beast.

She then heard a blood curdling howl, much like the one she heard when it killed the two men. She ran, ran and then ran some more, not caring for where she was going but only thinking of getting as far as possible from that thing. The trees turned into blurs as she started running on all fours, her animal instincts kicking in as she ran for her life. She dared to turn around to glance and immediately wished she had not. She could see in the dark of the forest two blood red orbs following her, seeming to leave a trail of light behind them because of the speeds at which they moved.

Ahri tried to keep running but her eyes were starting to water, making it hard for her to see. She heard a roar and turned to see the beast had disappeared. The red orbs no longer trailing on the ground. She stopped, breathing heavy from having exerted herself so much. She looked around frantically, trying to see where it had gone off to. A glowing red eyed werewolf looking beast couldn’t be that hard to find in the night?!

She heard a sound to the right and immediately whipped around to find nothing… She was panicking her heart seeming to beat out of her chest and a lump that  
seemed to swell in her throat with each second that ticked by. The Vastaya then felt her entire being shout one single word: Up. She threw her head and eyes upwards in time to see the monster pounce on her with a howl. She felt her arms being pinned to the point of almost breaking. She yelled in fear and terror as she knew her death was at hand. The beast starred at intently at her, its fang’s bared and its jaw slightly agape. She could feel the beast’s hot breath on her face and the foul smell of its breath.

She closed her eyes and wept. What else could she do? She hated crying, and it was the second time she had cried. In one night! It made her look weak and vulnerable, which she despised. Men were always looking down on her and so she had taught them not to.

But this thing in front of her saw her as nothing but prey. It didn't treat her like a weak and vulnerable creature. it **knew,** she was weak and vulnerable. But it hadn't always acted like that. When it had "saved" her from the poachers, it had shown kindness and intelligence.

However, If it had had any semblance of intellect, it had vanished the moment the chase started. Reasoning was out of the question. And escaping was an even less likely option now that she was being crushed under the beast’s weight.

And so, she wept, about how she never got to find out why her parents left, what were the two small and strange stones she had found by her side the moment she woke up. About all the adventures she never got to have, the friends she never got to meet, the world she never got to explore like she had wanted. So many things left to do but it was all going to be cut short by this hungered animal before her.

She wept and waited, waited and waited some more. What was taking this beast so long! One bite and it would be over! So, what was taking it so damn long! She  
peeked with one of her eyes and saw it. It was simply staring at her; the fiery red eyes having died down and the red liquid having turned back to green. It looked at  
her not like it had before, not like an animal but like a man. It looked so confused and…one would have even said sad, like it couldn’t decide what to do with her or  
itself for that matter, like its mind was split.

It then did something she had not expected, it talked.

“N-no…” It growled out, “N-no!”

It got off her and held its head in its paws again. The pumps on his back seemed to be working double time judging from the amount of steam they were letting out. It then whirled around and accidently hit a tree. It yelped and…cursed? It then looked back at the tree and an idea seemed to spark in its head. It grabbed the tree by its sides, threw its head backwards and rammed it full force against the giant oak, making a sound like cracking bark.

The beast stood there, motionless for a few seconds. Until finally his body slumped slightly and fell with a soft thud. The machinery on its back slowing to a stop.

Ahri stood motionless. Far too much had happened in far too little time. She looked back at the beast in absolute confusion. She stayed still looking at the werewolf like creature to see if it was moving at all. After waiting for what felt like months, she deemed that the creature had well and truly knocked itself out.

She then allowed herself to think clearly and try and figure out what on earth had happened. She was trying to understand what had happened, until she realised, she was still lying on the soft grassy bed of the forest. She got back up and lightly dusted herself off. She looked back at the beast in wonder.

The fox lady turned around and started slowly walking back into the forest, deciding it was best for her to just…leave. For now, at least. But something was holding her back. She looked back towards the beast. Its mouth was agape, its eyes had rolled back into its head and blood was freely flowing from the head. She felt such…Pity for the beast.

Wait! No!

She couldn’t feel pity for this thing! It had hunted and almost devoured her! Any sentient thing in this world could tell how much of a loose cannon this thing was! It had treated her like nothing but prey and when it finally was going to finish her…It stopped. Why did it stop itself? She had done nothing; she was far to weak to  
have been able to do anything. And even if she had tried to suck in the aura of the forest, it would have taken far too long to replenish enough energy to fight back.

And before all the hunting and almost killing her, it had saved her life. She would have been dead or worse, sold to some rich human as a freak show or slave. But it  
had saved her. And then it had sniffed her, like a curious pup that had never seen one of her kind. The machinery that had been grafted on it clearly showed a tortured background and the memories…Stars, the memories of this poor thing.

Even if it had chased and hunted her; this creature deserved some form of comfort in it its life. Ahri was very much aware of how dangerous her decision was, but she simply could not find it in her heart to leave it in its misery and sadness.

Now came the real challenge, how on Runeterra was she going to bring this beast her “house” …


	2. Warwick

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! So a bit of info before your read:  
> 1st: The Updates to this series will most likely not be regular. I'm the type of person that writes when they feel it, not because the need to.  
> 2nd: From now on, chapters will most likely be switching POVs DURING the chapter and not every chapter. It would be beyond exhausting to write the same chapter from a different POV every time.  
> 3rd: I have no idea how this series will continue, i'm not quite sure yet how to end this series (if I do at all) but I do plan on going on.
> 
> With that being said, enjoy the chapter!

It was a moonlit night in one of the forests of Ionia. Not a cloud in the sky and the stars were bare for all to see. All life was fast asleep, the only thing lighting the great woods were the dim lights of fireflies. Yet one creature did not rest. Its name was the Howler, or Warwick for those closer to him. 

The once man now turned wolfish chimera stalked the forest in the search of a meal, for even he, a beast driven only by rage and a chemical induced yearning for blood, needed to replenish his energy every so often. He smelled a deer that had the misfortune to stay up too late and started to hunt.

Ah, the hunt. The sweet adrenaline filled hunts that he oh so enjoyed. Once he remembered, he was not as he is now. Not driven by hunger, but by something else…

He snarled in pain. The memories always brought back pain. Pain and blood…blood, blood, blood and only blood! That was all he lived for now. The hunt and the blood trail that followed it. He had however redirected that lust for the crimson liquid to something of a more noble cause one could say. He had started as a merciless killer. Going from victim to victim, never caring about who they were. But as time went on and small shards of memories came back, he remembered he had tried to shun his own monster. Sadly, whatever happened before forced him to become what he had tried pushing away.

And so, he thought If he was going to be a monster, he would be the monster of monsters.

His reign of terror started in Zaun, the slums of the great technological city of Piltover. He hunted every night for blood. But not the blood of anyone, the blood on other people’s hands. The criminals, the murderers, the killers. None were safe from the Howler claws. He went from chem baron to chem baron, killing any other “monster” he could sniff out. 

However, even the great Warwick was not unkillable. After he had gotten into a fight, he had been severely injured and had been able to escape via the polluted rivers of the underground city but had lost consciousness during his dive. When he had next woken up, he had found himself upon the wooden deck of a boat. He had been strapped with rope by local fishermen that had most likely found him at the sea. Quickly remembering the past events, he was easily able to figure out how he got there. He did not smell any blood on the hands of these humble fishermen, he deemed them worthy to live and simply feigned a deep sleep until they hit land.

Once in the land of balance, Warwick violently broke his restraint and fled into the closest forest, which was not exactly next door considering how vast their beach area was. 

And so, stranded and alone on a foreign land, Warwick feasted on a deer. All the while he raked his brain trying to find a way back home. He couldn’t just walk into the Ionian port and politely ask for a ticket to Zaun. Firstly, because he was a hulking wolfish monster and secondly, because no boats ever went to Zaun if they had a choice.

Lost in thought and in the middle of feasting he almost missed the faint smell of fear and tension in the air. Almost...

He immediately stood up from the now half eaten prey, wiped his nose of the dripping blood and stuck his ears straight up. He took a great long whiff of the air and smelled it much more clearly, fear. His ears then picked up the faint sound of running, multiple people were running judging by the number of sounds he was hearing. He heard someone cry out they would take the tail of whoever they were chasing.

Tails? On a human being? These humans must have been quite confused. Either that or very drunk.

Then a new smell hit his nose.

**Blood…**

Someone was bleeding. Not only that but he smelled murderers, monsters like him, like in Zaun! The machinery in his body churned to life with the chemicals pumped in as his instincts started bringing out the beast. 

No! he yelled to himself, he would not lose himself like he had so many times before. He and only he would be in control!

He leapt into action, dropping and running on all fours. Whoever the person was that they were chasing was in danger. He had to kill the monsters of this world, and right now that was exactly what he planned on doing!

He ran, never once stopping for a breath, he was hunting now, no rest would be allowed until it was over. He ran through the dark green grass of the forest and followed the smell that was guiding him to his objective. He jumped over a fallen log and doubled his pace when he landed. The wind was howling in his ears and making his eyes water slightly, but he was used to it, this was not his first chase.

He kept running, the trees and foliage around him turning into blurs, panting like a famished dog but that didn’t matter, he was getting closer. Closer to his prey…

Only another couple hundred meters. He heard a yelp and a sound like something falling and rolling. He then heard a gasp and the sound of metal hitting flesh, this was all too familiar to him. Memories flashed back of his previous hunts. The blood, the chaos, the screams and death.

He howled with all his force, sending the peacefully sleeping birds in the trees above flapping and flying away for their lives. He finally saw what he had been hunting. Three men, all of them with guns. That was a clear indicator that they were not from Ionia, but they also did not care to look native to the land. They looked like pirates and mercenaries from Bilgewater.

They were all in a beautiful and flowering clearing in the middle of the forest. And then there was this woman. They seemed to have cornered her against the rock wall where the small hallowed grounds ended. Two of them moved in grabbing her arms and pinning her to the ground. The third one stayed back and pulled out a knife the size of a forearm. 

The woman in question had jet black hair, pale skin and red Japanese styled clothing. She also seemed to have some sort white furry limb that was coming out of her pelvis. Was that a tail? He did not have much time to examine or understand what he thought he had seen as there was little time remaining before he was within perfect pouncing range.

Warwick zeroed in on the one with the knife, easily recognisable as their leader and an easy kill for sure. He snarled and leapt at the “captain”. He heard him scream and shunned him by sinking his fangs into his windpipe. To make sure his job was done, the Howler yanked back, his teeth pulling out whatever else they were still latched on to. He opened his jaw back up, dropping the gory remains. Blood was dripping from his fangs and snout making him lose himself to the real beast. He stood up and took a great breath of air to try and clear his mind. It worked enough to allow him to think straight, but not enough to stop himself from what was about to happen next.

He snapped his eyes over to the two other grunts and snarled. He could see the fear in their eyes. Oh, the great and wonderful feeling of seeing the monsters and scum being put back into their place. They desperately fired their clips into him, pathetic he thought. He let them waste their bullets a second before howling at the moon with all the power his lungs could provide, the grass seeming to flatten with the force of his bellow. 

The two hunters dropped their guns to try and shield their ears from the abuse. The Howler used this moment of confusion to unsheathe his iron claws to their fullest and cleanly cut across both their throats. The sound of gargling filled his ears and the smell of blood filled his nostrils. He could feel the machinery on his back and the chemicals coursing through his veins, telling him to go further, to let loose! And he might have…

He however, among all the blood was able to smell something else, something…new, that seemed to completely melt the crimson liquid’s scent away. This new unfamiliar smell wasn’t like the metallic and heavy odour of blood. it was light and sweet. Like a smell he had always known but forgotten. It made him feel nostalgic, like he was home after being away for what seemed like an eternity.

He then remembered the woman from before. He turned his gaze away from his recent massacre and looked her way. 

As he had seen before, her hair was jet black, the skin was pale, and she had what Warwick would once have described as a slightly… “revealing” kimono. It was a mix between a dress and a classical Japanese tunic with a short skirt. The sleeves were also not attached to the main body of the cloth and must have been tied around the arms of the lady. 

The wolf then looked up the face of this strange person. To say she was beautiful was the understatement of the century. Her face was perfectly symmetrical. She had three short whisker-like markings on each cheek, giving her a slight animal-like look. And her eyes…Where to start with her eyes? They were bright yellow, that seemed to reflect intelligence and cunningness. Yet something was strange about her pupils, they were very…fox like. Instead of orbs like a normal human, she had slits in each eye. 

And this smell...This smell! He didn’t know what he loved so much about it but it was so intoxicating. He couldn’t get enough of it. He moved in, taking in her scent with each breath he took. He moved to her neck and breathed in deeply before exhaling. He saw the Fox jolt and shiver suddenly. warwicks eyes flew wide open and he backed away immediately checking to see if she had planned on hurting him. But all he saw was fear and...was that curiosity ?!

Why on Runeterra was this woman looking like she was curious of all things? What was this strange person before him, why did she have animal traits, why was she curious about him instead of being scared out of her mind, and why was he smell so exhilarating?

He looked back at her face and noticed something he hadn’t before, a cut, with blood flowing out of it...

He clutched his head in pain as everything he tried to bury resurfaced. His mind was filled with blood, the memories, the table, the doctor, the blood! No no no no no no, PLEASE NO! Hadn’t he gone through enough? Couldn’t he just forget? Why did he have to go through this? He clutched his head in pain as everything he tried to bury resurfaced

Then a voice, not unlike his own spoke, “Because you are a monster.”

Of course he was a monster. He had to be a monster, for those who were not. For those that were innocent. He would divert his lust for violence, he would track, he would hunt, he would kill. He would slaughter everyone and everything that had blood on its hands! 

Blood. it always went back to the crimson liquid, it had become his life, his purpose, his drive. He relished in the taste, the smell, **EVERYTHING.**

A soft thud sounded next to him as he was still deep in thought. And then he smelled it once more, the blood. He turned his head and saw a red trail, heading to a blurry figure outlined in red. His vision was distorted, he could only see in shades of red. This had happened before to the Howler, and oftentimes meant that whatever made him see this would not make it out with their lives.

He felt the machines and pumps on his back hum to life as the drug stored in his back was injected into him. His senses were heightened and his claws were bare. He saw the figure running out of the clearing and into the woods. Let her run, he thought, the hunt will be all the more enjoyable...

He howled to the moon then got on all fours. His muscles tensed as they readied for the oncoming mad run. He dug his claws into the soil bellow and pulled himself into his dash with all his strength. Oh he loved this, so so much. He smelled the fear, the tension, THE BLOOD. 

He kept trailing his prey, running along the ground. It was trying to lose him by running along the trees. How foolish of it. Warwick roared and veered into the shadows. It could not run from something it could not see. She saw the silhouette stop and frantically look around. Perfect... Warwick lurked around her. He walked circles around his prey, letting it sit in it’s terror. He saw it perking its ears up to try and hear him. He then found a spot behind it and got low on the ground. His muscles tensing once more in anticipation. With a mighty howl he lept and crashed down on his target as it turned to witness its doom. He pinned it by holding its shoulder under his strength and weight. It squirmed and tried releasing itself from the Howlers iron grasp, to no avail.

It was time to end this. His lips curled back and his jaw opened as he descended slowly to his prey's neck. He saw it close its eyes as it accepted its fate. But then... It started shaking softly and sporatikely. What was it doing? Never mind, he had to finish this monster that smelled of blood. He moved in more closely to its windpipe. He was trembling with anticipation, he was thinking of the wonderful taste the blood would leave in his mouth. 

Then he heard a quiet sob...

Warwick stopped dead in his tracks. He looked up and saw the figure sobbing. His vision started unblurring and he smelled a familiar smell. He saw what he had been hunting. 

T-the fox...

What had he been doing? NO! This was just like in Zaun, whenever he tried helping someone, he ended up getting lost in the blood. He was supposed to save her, not kill her!

He looked up at her face, she was crying. Her eyes were still closed, she had been expecting death from him, and he had almost given it to her! He breathed in once again taking in her scent. The same melancholic and homecoming smell… He was supposed to be a monster to monsters, not just another monster innocents should fear.

He snapped back out of his trance and looked back to the woman. Her eyes were closed and she was sobbing. Her neck was bare and exposed, she wasn’t trying to defend herself at all. He couldn’t feel her pushing against his weight to survive, almost like...almost like...she had been waiting for her death. She was welcoming it.

This was all wrong… it wasn’t supposed to be like this.

**Track…** said a voice in his head.

No… he thought.

**Hunt.**

****No.

**KILL!**

****NO! He roared, reeling himself off of the Fox and clutching his head in his hands. Sinking his claws into his head as he did. He thrashed and howled, trying to keep the bloodlust at bay. But he could feel himself losing his grip, losing his mind! It felt like it was going to shatter in two at any moment. He needed to get away or stop himself and fast. He tried walking away but couldn’t his limbs were not responding. He felt the pumps on his back pumping more and more vile mixture in his system, trying to make him lose it. When it felt like he was on the brink of going berserk again, he tripped and fell against a tree.

He just needed to stop somehow… 

The Howler would have smiled because of the ridiculousness of his idea, if he wasn't trying so hard to keep his mind from failing him.

He grabbed the tree by both sides of the trunk, his claws sinking into the back almost automatically, and with the last of his will power, He threw his head back and rammed it into the tree with all his strength. The sound of bark and bones cracking echoed loudly through the night. 

Warwick didn’t think anything had EVER hit him this hard. But soon enough he didn’t think at all. He felt his mind numbing and his eyes started focusing in and out of the scenery. Before completely blacking out he took one last glance at the girl. She was still partially laying there, but her head and upper body had slightly risen to look at him in confusion.

She will be safe now, he thought finally as he staggered before falling to the floor, his vision going dark as he hit the ground.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this far. hope you guys enjoyed!
> 
> If you haven't read the beginning notes, I highly advise you do. 
> 
> Feel free to leave a comment on what you thought of the chapter and what you did or didn't like.
> 
> I will try, emphasis on TRY, to get the next chapter out it in the next 2 weeks-ish.


	3. The Hunter's Pride

Warwicks eyes shot open. He was surrounded by darkness. He couldn’t hear anything, he could only hear, smell and touch. He heard a voice, it was so sweet and warm sounding, the voice seemed to fill every ounce of himself with happiness. It sounded like a mother speaking to her children. What was she saying? Who was this person?

He started making his way towards it but was tripped by something that grabbed at his ankle. He hit the ground and turned to face a horde of corpses. Men, women, children, aged, young, all of them with marks of bite and scratch marks on their entire bodies.

He was petrified in fear, they seemed to be staring into his soul with their dark and hollow eyes. There was a smell of rot and putrefaction in the air that couldn’t allow him to think about anything but it. He felt a small pair of hands grab at his other leg. He turned and saw a small girl with blue hair. She looked up at him and agonizingly moaned his name.

_Warwick..._

Warwick? Who was Warwick? It couldn’t be him! He had a name! It was…

It was…

What was his name?! He had had one! He was sure of it!

He was ripped away from his thoughts as the corpses started moaning his name in unison. He was starting to panic wildly. He desperately kicked them away, and stumbled back as far as he could. 

His back soon hit something though. He turned to see what, but only saw a lab coat and a hand reaching out.

“This one will do,” said a voice coming from the _thing_ behind him. As the hand touched his shoulder. He felt leather belts restrain him from every side. Forcing him on his back. He tugged and pulled with all his strength, but the material wouldn’t give out.

He couldn’t move! The hand pulled something out of its coat, a syringe filled with green liquid, glowing with what must have been magic. He struggled and yelled. Who was this man? What did he want?!

The appearance before him snapped his fingers and a new belt appeared to gag him. Syringe got closer and closer until finally the man stabbed it into his neck, injecting the liquid within it. He felt the concoction make its way through his system. And after a brief instant pain shot throughout his entire body. It felt like his bones were pushing out against his skin. 

It hurt, it hurt so much. How did pain this intense even exist?! He screamed and yelled as the man before him simply took notes in a journal. He then felt his right arm hurt more than anything he had ever felt.

It pushed and pushed and kept pushing. Until a sickly and short “snap” echoed through the darkness around him. He felt nothing for an instant. He knew what had happened but refused to admit it had happened. He slowly turned his head towards his arm, pain slowly flaring as he got closer to seeing. Then he laid his eyes on it. His forearm bones had snapped and torn through his skin. The pain reached its peak at that moment. He screamed, but never stopped. He screamed until his voice broke. Until he could scream no more.

  
  


But the pain never left…

After minutes, hours, days maybe. He could bear the pain in his arm no more. The shadow shackles receded into darkness and freed his left arm. He grabbed his right hand, and pulled. More pain shot through his system, but he kept pulling. He couldn’t deal with this anymore, it hurt too much. He needed to rid himself of this. 

EVEN IF IT MEANT DOING THIS!

He pulled and soon started hearing flesh ripping. He felt every strand of meat connecting his body to the remains of his hand, he felt the snap and felt his hand reaching further and further away. 

The only few strands still connected him to the pain. Let him get rid of it, PLEASE! 

Only one, singular strand remained. He pulled one last time and…

  
  
  
  


Two voices panted and heaved as they dragged their heavy package through the uneven ground of the Ionian forest. Ahri held on to the Wolf’s arm as she kept trudging forward. Luckily for her she had someone to aid her, as she would never have been able to move the beast an inch if she hadn’t asked for help from the Pridestalker, Rengar.

The white tiger Vastaya had owed her a favor and she had turned it in by asking him to help her move the beast to her home. She had explained to him briefly the events of last night and what she had found out about the creature. She found it unimportant for the Vastaya to know about what she had seen about his aura and soul. At first the Hunter had eyed here strangely, clearly questioning her sanity after having heard her story. She had quickly shut him up by simply telling him to: shut up.

And so here they were, both of them walking through the flush greenery, carrying a 200kg (~440 pounds) biomechanical wolf from who knows where, as he groaned, growled and shook. Likely from a nightmare. All of this combined made the travel back to her home quite tedious. 

She would never admit it, but Rengar was definitely doing most of the carrying. He was much stronger than her physically. She tried her best to lift some as well, but could carry only a short way before the Tiger had to take the relay. 

While they were walking, Rengar did something he seldom started.

“Tell me Fox,” he said, “I am aware that you told me not to ask further, but i can feel that you are hiding something from me.” 

Ahri felt a cold chill go down her spine, her and Rengar were not enemies, but they were also not what you would call friends. They tolerated, and sometimes helped one another, but no more. Rengar did not take kindly to having things hidden from him, and she was quite scared of what the Hunter would do if he truly got angry. Not that she specifically wanted to find out, knowing full well how most of the hunts went for the prey of the Pridestalker.

“I know you, Fox,” he continued, “I know that you would not take pity on a creature that tried to murder you, even if it did previously tried to save you.

How dare he?! She wasn't some cold blooded killer. She did care for life, she just… found her chances of survival better if she let as few people meddle with her business. 

Rengar suddenly stopped and dropped the Wolf. Ahri turned to see Rengar growling at her, with his lips slightly curled back, giving her a partial view of the Pridestalker’s fangs. She felt cold sweat bead at the back of her neck. He slowly started walking towards her, his steps making not the faintest noise as they landed. 

“Tell me Ahri…” He began making circles around her, like a beast watching its prey, waiting for the right moment to strike. “What did you find out about this… _abomination_ , that you did not think was important to mention? 

Ahri felt herself grow more and more tense as seconds passed. Rengar put a hand to the back of his waist and started unsheathing his knife. Ahri created a ball of mana, she knew that if she didn’t answer this would turn into a fight. 

Both of them stopped and simply stared at each other. The forest seemed to go quiet in anticipation for the coming battle. 

“Rengar...This doesn’t have to be like this.” Ahri exclaimed, breaking the silence momentarily. “It is good enough that I know what I know, and you simply do me the favor you owe.”

“I am a hunter Ahri!” he retorted, “and a hunter does not come by a creature so exotic every day…” As he finished his sentence, he unhooked the claws latched onto his left arm, and stood still.

The pressure of the atmosphere was unbearable. The whole forest seemed to be holding its breath in anticipation. Rengar crouched to the floor and put a hand to the ground, getting ready to pounce. Ahri’s aura orb grew and her usually blue eyes turned violet. The battle was imminent, and just as blood was about to be shed….

The beast stirred slightly.

Rengar and Ahri’s eyes darted to the beast, but the tiger Vastaya did not focus on him like the fox. He grinned and pounced her while she was distracted. Ahri saw this coming and jumped out of the way, but to her dismay, too slowly. Rengar’s knife cut across her left arm like butter. Leaving her with a deep gouge.

Ahri turned around immediately, but Rengar was gone, nowhere to be seen. 

_Of course..._ She thought. Rengar was a hunter, he was brutal and ruthless but the most terrifying was his stealth prouesse. Ahri threw her “fox fire” in three different directions, hoping to get him to move so she would know where he had hidden. Not a sound or movement. 

Ahri then heard a roar and was pinned to the ground. Rengar had pounced her! He had his knee on her back and her right arm twisted behind her back, effectively rendering her immobile. 

Rengar growled and put his lips to her ear. 

“Last chance _Fox_ ,” he threatened, “What. Are. You. Hiding?!” He roared his last words, making her ears ring slightly. 

She would not tell him. But why?! Why was she choosing not to tell him, she had every reason to right now!

Rengar seemed to read her mind. He stabbed his knife right next to her head and asked: “I do not understand Ahri, this is unlike you, why are you choosing to protect a _stranger’s secret over_ your own life?! This makes no sense!”

“I don’t know!” She finally yelled, “I don’t know, ok…? There is something about this creature that is different…That is...misunderstood...” She whimpered quietly as the fear and the pain in her arm flared. Why was she protecting this wolf so vehemently. He had saved her, so what? Right after that he had hunted her down! Like a damn animal!

But then…

Then… When it had saved her, it was so kind, so afraid to hurt her… Like it had truly cared about her. That moment when it had stepped back, when it thought it had hurt her. Their eyes, they had been so kind and worried… 

Rengar snorted with disgust and grabbed his knife. He threw his arm in the air and brought it down. Ahri shut her eyes tight and waited for the pain to come. It never came. All that came was a sound halfway between a snarl and a howl, as Rengar’s weight was lifted off of her.

  
  
  
  


Warwick’s eyes shot open, having been awoken from his nightmare, cold sweat running down his back. The first thing he heard and felt were his pumps churning and moving slowly on his back.

At first, he didn’t move, daring only to glance around. He could only see forest and jungle as far as he could see.

The sun shone brightly above, and the forest was...quiet…

Why would a forest be quiet in the middle of the day?

He tried remembering what happened last night… He only remembered the hunts, the blood and then…

The Fox! 

As that thought hit his mind he heard two voices behind him. One of a woman, the other of a man, or male, that voice was not human from what he could tell. It sounded more like a tiger trying to speak and succeeding somewhat. 

He heard the male speak first. “I am a Hunter Ahri!” He barked out, “And a hunter does not come by a creature so...exotic every day.”

He was clearly talking about him, who was this person, was he with the poachers last night? Warwick wasn’t afraid, one man could not take him down, even if he was more beast than man from the sound of his voice. He heard a small sound of metal clicking and a growl. Followed by what sounded like an echo of a whirlwind and an eerie blue light emanating from behind him.

The Howler could feel the tension in the air. It was like gravity had increased with how crushing the atmosphere was. He couldn’t bear not knowing what was happening behind his very back! 

He tried shifting slightly to maybe get a better view on the oncoming battle. He was hoping they would be too concerned with each other to notice his movement.

  
  


He hoped wrong, he saw both of them whip their heads his way the moment he moved. But in that moment, he saw who was talking. It was this strange great feline beast walking on two legs, with thick hide armour strewn about his (,he assumed it was a he,) body. The white feline had a great knife that he held in a queer fashion with the blade facing backwards, it also had two claws attached to his wrist. But the most noticeable feature was his eyes. One was blue and the other was yellow, or at least had a yellow glow to it. He didn’t quite have the time to see in detail. 

The second person, as he had heard, was indeed a woman. But not just any woman, it was the strange “Fox”, as the hunters had called her, from last night. She still had her strange red and white silk kimono contrasted with her jet black hair. The new addition to her was this strange blue magic orb she held in her hand. It was like looking into a raging but perfectly blue ocean.

  
  


After his more than brief overview, he tightly closed his eyes, hoping and praying they would think he was still asleep.

He could only hear and imagine the following events.

He heard a sound like a roar, as something kicked the ground. The warcry was followed by the crackling of fire and a small yelp. He then heard silence for a moment, the only noise being heavy breathing and the soft sound of the machinery upon Warwick's back. 

He soon however heard another roar come from behind and over him, a thud and a loud thud was what continued. 

After such a short quiet time and a few pain filled grunts, Warwick heard the feline speak again.

“Last chance Fox.” He seemed to threaten, “what. Are. You. Hiding?”

Hiding something? About what? Warwick did want to leap and help the woman who had clearly been pounced from the sounds he had heard, but his curiosity was getting the better of him. And he hated it. He heard something stab the ground.

“I do not understand Ahri,” the tiger-man growled at her. So her name was Ahri? That had to be one of the strangest names the Howler had heard in a long time. His train of thought was cut as the feline roared his next words.

“This is unlike you, why are you choosing to protect a _stranger’s secret over_ your own life?! This makes no sense!”

Protect? She was protecting...his “secret”. What on earth had the woman found out about him during his time of unconsciousness?! He had spared the woman and she had dug something up about him!

Warwick could feel himself becoming more and more hostile, his breathing becoming uneven, as the feeling of betrayal washed over him. How dare she?!

But then, she spoke.

“I don’t know!” She shouted, “I don’t know, ok…?”

And just like that, the Howler felt his anger vanish as quickly as it had come. The sadness in her voice… he couldn’t bear it. Why was he feeling so sad for her? She was almost a perfect stranger to him.

She continued, “There is something about this creature that is different…That is...misunderstood…” Warwick didn’t understand what this woman was talking about. He was a monster, what was there to understand? He was a bloodthirsty monster. 

_Blood…_

A familiar scent hit his nostrils, a metallic scent… a _Bloody scent._

Warwick felt the pumps churn on his back as his mind slipped away from his grasp as the beast started taking over. He opened his eyes, finally seeing what was happening.

He saw the beast-man holding his knife above his head like he was going to…

_Kill her…_

Warwick’s last rational thoughts before he slipped were a silent prayer. A prayer that he would kill the feline but not the woman.

_Please,_ he thought, _please if anyone is hearing this, I beg you. Don’t. Let. Me. Kill. Her…_

And then, there was only the beast.

He snarled as he sprang into action, pouncing on his prey. Pushing it off the other female. They both rolled away before Warwick finished on top of the feline, his hands holding him down by the shoulders. He howled into his prey’s face as he lifted his right hand, the metal claws extending with a metallic noise. And brought it down with all his might.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed the read! I plan on writing more of this as I had lots of fun with it. Please feel free to leave a review and tell me what you did and didn't like! Thanks again for reading!


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